Nanoscale Materials for Warfare Agent Detection: Nanoscience for Security

This book presents a blueprint for researchers in the area of nanotechnology for chemical defense, especially with regard to future research on detection and protection. It addresses the synthesis of complex nanomaterials with potential applications in a broad range of sensing systems. Above all, it discusses novel experimental and theoretical tools for characterizing and modeling nanostructures and their integration in complex systems.

The book also includes electronic structure calculations exploring the atomic and quantum mechanical mechanisms behind molecular binding and identification, so as to provide readers with an in-depth understanding of the capabilities and limitations of various nanomaterial approaches. Gathering contributions by scientists with diverse backgrounds, the book offers a wealth of insightful information for all scientists whose work involves material science and its applications in sensing.

• nanotechnology for gas sensing
• functionalisation of nanostructures
• theoretical modelling of bi-dimensional materials
• Kirkendall effect
• Nanotech for defense

• Université de Mons - UMONS, Mons, Belgium

  Carla Bittencourt

• Inst. des Materiaux Jean Rouxel (IMN), CNRS / University of Nantes, Nantes, France

  Chris Ewels

• Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Tarragona, Spain

  Eduard Llobet

Carla Bittencourt studied physics at the University Federal Fluminense (Brazil). Next she completed a joint Ph.D. program at the University of Campinas (Brazil) and the University La Sapienza (Italy) (1998), focusing on surface and interface analysis. After a nomination for a Postdoctoral Fellowship at the University of Warwick (UK) in 1998 to study the interaction of molecules and atoms with metallic surfaces, she joined the University of Namur (Belgium) as a Postdoctoral Researcher in 2002. In 2014 she was appointed Research Associate (F.R.S.-FNRS) at the University of Mons (Belgium). She has been an active user of synchrotron X-ray spectromicroscopy, and conduct experiments at CLS (Canada), Elettra (Italy) and BESSY II (Germany). Her present research activities are focused on the chemical functionalization and characterization of nanostructures using X-ray photoelectron spectromicroscopy and electron microscopy. Doctor Bittencourt’s research interests include metal oxide nanostructures, doping of 2D materials – transition metal dicalchogenides and carbon based-nanostructures.

Christopher P. Ewels is a CNRS Research Director at the Institute of Materials Jean Rouxel, Nantes, France, and a visiting professor at Toyo University, Japan. He received his Ph.D. degree in 1997 from Exeter University, followed by postdoc at Sussex University, ONERA Paris, and a Marie Curie Individual Fellowship at Paris South University, before joining the CNRS in 2005. He coordinates the Marie Skłodowska-Curie “Enabling Excellence” training network on nanocarbons. He is active in science communication and has previously worked for the science communication charity “The Vega Science Trust”, producing science videos. His research focuses on atomic scale computer modelling and electron microscopy of nanoscale carbons, notably defect structures, chemical functionalization, and rational materials design.

Eduard Llobet is full professor at the Departament d'Enginyeria Electrònica, Elèctrica i Automàtica of the Universitat Rovira i Virgili, where he obtained a tenured position in 1996. He was awarded a PhD in Telecom Eng in 1997 from the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya and then joined the Sensor Research Lab (UWarwick, UK) for a postdoc. In 2006 and 2014 he was invited researcher at the CNRS-IMS in Bordeaux (France) and at Institut Pascal in Clermon Ferrand (France) in 2016. From 2010 to 2014 he was Director of the Research Centre on Engineering of Materials and micro/nano Systems. In 2012 he received the URV's RQR Award for quality in research and the ICREA Academia Award. He has authored near 200 papers at peer-reviewed journals (over 5000 citations) and 6 patents.

Prof. Llobet is currently addressing the fabrication of sensor arrays employing low-dimensional metal oxides and/ or functionalized carbon nanomaterials. Cost-effective and industrially scalable methods such as chemical vapour deposition or aerosol-assisted chemical vapour deposition are considered for bottom-up integration in MEMS or flexible platforms. The applications sought are the development of sensitive and selective gas microsensors for environmental monitoring, medicine or safety.

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